The Language of the Film: Understanding the Meaning of the Monolith in 2001: A Space Odyssey

Preface: The following is a screening report on two important sequences in Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey. A screening report is an objective and concrete examination of a specific topic on a film. It focuses on audio and visual details. Please note that this is a more extensive report due to the nature of the topic—as opposed to most screening reports, which range around a couple of paragraphs or even two paragraphs depending on the brevity of the topic.   Please refer to Timothy Corrigen’s A Short Guide to Writing about Film listed on my “Book Recommendations” page for a more detailed explanation of a screening report.

It is impossible not to be immediately seduced by Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey’s rich imagery and allegorical implications. For a film that was released in 1968, its special effects can still be considered impressive compared to today’s standards of what can be considered realistic. The film is a true exemplification of the use of filmic language at its best. Dialogue is kept to a minimum or eliminated entirely in some sequences, leaving it to the spectator to draw inferences by immersing himself in the film’s language. 2001: A Space Odyssey is indeed articulate in its collective interplay of sound, shot, cinematography, and subdued editing. It provides a narrative that is provocatively and philosophically allegorical especially in its timeless themes regarding man’s existence in the universe.

Critics continue to come up with their own interpretation behind the meaning of the monolith, especially in relation to man.  But there is no one way to define it. Screenwriters Stanley Kubrick and Arthur C. Clark intentionally wanted an open interpretation. Therefore, we, as spectators, are left trying to figure out what it can possibly mean, based on the film’s rich, visual vocabulary. In the 1993 reprint of the novel, which includes an introduction by Clark, he mentions that Kubrick wanted to create a science fiction film that will be resoundingly legendary[1].   Kubrick was able to achieve this by creating a cinematic language that not only confounds us but also speaks to us today—artistically and thematically.

To examine the monolith’s meaning, 2001: A Space Odyssey can be explored through two important sequences where the monolith carries significant symbolism: the opening sequence “The Dawn of Man” where the monolith appears on earth and the closing sequence “Jupiter and Beyond the Infinite” where the monolith appears again but in a mysterious, unknown world.  (Although midway through the film, man has discovered a monolith on the moon where it is sending signals to Jupiter. As a result, man attempts to find out what the signal means as they embark on an ambitious odyssey to Jupiter in the year 2001—hence, the title of the film.)

“The Dawn of Man” sequence depicts the monolith’s arrival on a barren plain inhabited by primates (pre-man). This is illustrated through a “dry” looking color palette—a combination of yellow, red, orange, and brown. Kubrick “paints” a panoramic shot of this desert-like setting and places spectators in this bleak world. Prior to the monolith’s arrival, conflicts among differing ape tribes are in place. The first is reminiscent of the Darwinistic survival of the fittest conflict between two tribes. Both tribes compete for the limited water supply. They are all malnourished, hungry, and uncertain how to find means of survival, especially when they need to fight for natural resources such as water. Fear and hostility exacerbate the conflicts amongst the tribes. This is underscored by the close-up shots of the apes, appearing fearful and distressed. The second conflict is the inability to protect oneself from the perils of other species—such as the ferocious and ravenously hungry leopard. From this, we see a meticulously framed distant shot of a leopard attacking an ape. Based on their emotional and physical conditions, the primates are unsophisticated in thought. They do not know how to forage for food. They do not know how to truly protect themselves. Thus, they are prone to victimization. This happens for days and nights—as we see repetitive shots of the rise and fall of the sun appearing and disappearing behind the horizon.

A turn of events takes place when the monolith arrives. It is intentionally positioned in the middle of the composition to accentuate its sudden presence in this barren world. It emits a powerful and hypnotic sound that incites the curiosity of one of the tribes, which prompts them to gravitate towards the monolith.   The partially illuminated barren landscape magnifies, literally and figuratively, the grandeur of this extra- terrestrial inhabitant that appears god-like in its tall, dark, angular omnipotence. From this, the tribe of primates who first takes notice of this mysterious spectacle is suddenly arrested with the ability to pull ideas together and most importantly, to think and find solutions. This is clearly illustrated when an ape is able to use a bone from a dead animal as a tool for destruction—which is seen in the intercutting shots of the ape using the bone to pound on an animal skull and then later on an unconscious pig. With this discovery, they are able to forage for food successfully. When the camera follows the bone in the air and then it cuts to a scene of a spacecraft floating, we are able to make sense of this juxtaposition: Man has discovered a tool, in the primate world and in the third millennium world. In the primate world, the tool now has two functions: (1) to kill other species for consumption and (2) to destroy others (even within their own species) who happen to threaten their well-being.   From this, we learn that an intelligent pre-man is able to fight efficiently and effectively and to prevent starvation—hence survive.  In the third millennium, man has discovered another tool that encourages exploration beyond earthly confines.

Therefore, the last sequence titled “ Jupiter and Beyond the Infinite” takes us to a new era where man is able to reach the apex of intelligence, that is, to go beyond human capacity, especially in the realm of technological science. We no longer have to live within earthly confines and, therefore, we can explore beyond Earth.   As the monolith is still a striking mystery to man, more tools are developed to explore what still baffles us.  For instance, as Dave becomes the only survivor on the mission to Jupiter, he is suddenly taken on another mission that is visually and psychologically unsettling.  This is illustrated in Kubrick’s mind-boggling, phantasmagoric photography. In the midst of harsh shafts of high key lighting and low key lighting, amoeba-like images, and volcanic eruptions are brief close-up shots of Dave appearing shock, bewildered, and fearful. The visual experience is enhanced by the explosive and rumbling sounds of what supposedly depict space travel. Through this, spectators are pulled in the bowels of the universe that surpasses Jupiter—the supposed final stop.  We do not know if this was the intention of the monolith, which is briefly seen floating in space. Once the space journey ends, we are taken to an ornate bedroom that looks as if it belongs to the palace of Versailles, France.   We see this through the point of view shot of Dave, surveying his new “world.” From this, we also get another revealing close-up shot of Dave, weathered, aged, and still clearly in shock.   The camera later pans around the room and we see a light blue bathroom with a porcelain bath tub, a bed with a bluish green silk comforter, and illuminated white floor. Only the image of Dave contrasts with the light bluish hues. He is in his red space suit when he arrives. When he settles in to his new place, he is dressed in black. He is alien to this new world.
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But in this unfamiliar world, Dave sees his future based on the point of view shot. More knowledge is given to him. He sees himself eating. He is in black loungewear—no longer in his space suit. A glass falls to the floor when he reaches over the table while eating. We see a shot of shattered glass on the white floor. Does it signify destruction of man or is it a mere representation of the gravitational atmosphere Dave is placed in (i.e., an Earth-like world)? It is evident that Dave is intelligent enough to survive in this lonely, baroquely-styled sterile world. (This is also reminiscent of the primates being able to survive in their prehistoric world).   We can assume that the monolith has guided Dave’s intelligence just as the monolith has guided the primates’ intelligence when it comes to survival.

The scene slowly transitions to a shot of Dave in his final days. He has aged significantly—no hair and a severely wrinkled face. He can barely move and is bedridden.   One of his hands reaches out and as the camera cuts to a full view of him lying in bed, we see Dave reaching out to the monolith, which is now positioned at the foot of his bed.   Later the scene cuts to the star child, floating above the bed. Could this mean the cycle of death and rebirth? As the scene cuts again to a frame with the star child floating in space to the left of the frame and Earth to the right of the frame, could this mean a new beginning for man?   The juxtaposition of images of man, monolith, star child, and earth suggests the conception of knowledge, intellectual growth (i.e., conception) as a tool for survival—hence, the image of the star child in a womb.   But knowledge comes with a price. It can be destructive, it can be imprisoning, it can be isolating, it can be seductive, it can be nightmarish, and it can be a failed idealism. Man surrenders himself to the monolith, which takes on an ominous and divine presence in both prehistoric times and in the future, which perhaps implicates that man must set limits to his explorations. Is it necessary to know too much? Is human arrogance and curiosity a good thing? With these questions in mind, 2001: A Space Odyssey can be seen as an allegorical parable of man’s intellectual quest, its limitations and risks to continue to go far and beyond.

[1] Introduction to 2001: A Space Odyssey. 2001:  A Space Odyssey. Clark, Arthur C. Roc Book: New York, 1993.

A screening report specifically written for Film Criticism and Theory on September 11, 2014

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